Adults in Charge 3
by Pixel and Stephanie Forever
Summary: After Mezoti's death, Naomi takes a promotion and goes ground side. When Azan's ship is attacked in the Delta Quadrant, Naomi heads off with Rebi and the fleet to bring him home. But they must first find out who attacked him and his crew...
1. Grey Lady Down

**Grey Lady Down **

"Admiral on the deck!"

"As you were" Naomi Wildman stepped out of the turbolift and onto the bridge. "I'm not an Admiral just yet, Number One" she growled as she came around the railing and took her seat. In recognition of her many years of dedicated service to Starfleet and the Federation, Naomi had been promoted to the rank of Admiral. On the cruise to Earth, her crew had taken to calling her by the new rank whenever they saw her. Her current First Officer was going to take her place as Captain of the Mezoti while Naomi was going to be on the Board of the Admiralty. As soon as she had got news of her promotion, Naomi started plotting ways to get back a Starship command.

"Captain, we're five hours away from Pluto" said Reed – her First Officer's hair was a touch over the regulation length, but Naomi was inclined to look the other way.

"Ship's status?"

"We've replaced the faulty sensor relay. Defensive and offensive systems are on standby mode, all drive systems register as normal" an Engineering officer said.

'Given the long trip home, things seemed to be going alright…' Naomi thought to herself. The Mezoti was on a long voyage home after trade and goodwill visits to several systems in the Delta Quadrant. They had maintained a maximum transwarp journey home – stopping only to lay a wreath at the site where Mezoti had died. As she sat and watched her crew go about their tasks, Naomi became bored slightly and decided to do something about it. "Bridge to Engineering"

"Engineering"

"Increase transwarp drive to maximum power"

"May I remind the Captain that it is not safe to push the engines past safety limits?"

"Your objection and reminder is noted, Commander. The order stands, Bridge out. Helm, prepare for ludicrous speed"

"Aye, Captain"

#

"She'll be retiring before you get the cake finished" Azan said.

"Sorry, Captain" the crewman said. "I'll work quicker" and she did.

"Just got a signal from the Mezoti" Rebi stuck his head round the doorframe. "Naomi's coming a bit early" and his twin rolled his eyes.

"She'll be wanting to stop off at Jupiter I'd say" and Azan left the kitchen and went with his brother to the Operations room down the corridor. It served as a back up for the main control room in the control tower, and both of them spent time listening to ships coming and going in their off duty hours. Both of them had managed to get to Spacedock a day before Naomi so they could welcome their friend home. In the years since Mezoti's death, both of them had been promoted to Captain and given command of Galaxy class starships before handed the reigns of refitted Defiant class vessels. Rumour had it that either one of them were good candidates for the last of the Voyager class to come off the slips – the Seven of Nine

# # # # #

One Year Later

"Admiral, you're going to be late for that meeting" said a Lieutenant.

"What?" Naomi looked up at the old fashioned clock on the wall.

"I've managed to hold a turbolift for you at the end of the hall" said the other officer as Naomi put on her uniform jacket. She disliked wearing it, and normally did her work without it – putting it on only for important meetings. It was that foible that still had her as a respected officer throughout the service.

"You are a godsend, Tessa" said Naomi. "I'll promote you for this"

"Chance would be a fine thing" said the woman before going back to her work station.

#

"Glad you could make it on time, Admiral Wildman" said one of the waiting officers.

"Sorry, Sir" Naomi slipped into her seat. "I was just finishing the trade details for Cestus III"

"I understand" said the officer. "They can be tricky to do. I believe Admiral Williams has something he wishes to discuss"

"Long range sensors on the Argus Array picked up emergency distress calls from one of our scouting vessels. We've not been able to pick her up using the Pathfinder Project's MIDAS array, and we've not heard from her since" Admiral Williams looked towards Naomi and wondered how to say the next part. "The ship was the USS Alba – Captain Azan commanding"

"Oh no…"

"The fact that we've not heard from the Alba could mean her comm system was damaged. However, the transmissions we picked up indicated that the ship was under attack from at least four hostile vessels" Williams said.

"So what are we going to do about it?" Naomi asked.

"We're putting a Task Force together and sending them out to the last known location of the Alba with orders to investigate and retrieve the ship and crew if possible" Williams said.

"Admiral, request permission to accompany the group" Naomi said at once.

"We want you to lead the task force, Naomi" Williams told her. "The details of the group's makeup is up to you. You've got a week to get the ships you want supplied and under sailing orders"

"Aye, Sir" Naomi replied. "I'll need everything sent to my office as soon as possible" she added.

"You better get going now, Naomi" Williams said. Naomi nodded and raced for the door.

#

"Tessa, get me the Pathfinder project" Naomi told her aide as she entered the office.

"Yes, Ma'am" Tessa opened the channel as Naomi entered her office and sat down at the desk with the door still open. "Pathfinder on the line, Ma'am"

"Commander Deckand, I want a priority real time link to the USS Seven of Nine, and I want it now" Naomi said to the person on her screen.

"I'm afraid that we're running a real time link to Deep Space Nine" the man said.

"You have new orders, Mister. I want that link in under two minutes, or you're facing the brig" Naomi's face was going red. She was normally quite mild mannered, and didn't usually lose her temper like that – but it was known that nothing could stop her after she gone off on one.

"Yes, Ma'am. Sorry, Ma'am" the man gulped and hurried to do as he was ordered.

"Tessa, get me the last known position of all the Voyager class ships apart from Seven of Nine" Naomi shouted to her aide.

"Getting them now, Admiral" Tessa Albright was all business at that moment.

"Link established, Admiral Wildman" Deckand said to Naomi. The screen switched to the Starfleet insignia before changing to the bridge of the Seven of Nine.

"_Admiral Wildman_" the first officer said. "_A pleasant surprise to see you_"

"I want to speak to Captain Rebi"

"_He's asleep, Ma'am_"

"Then wake him"

"Aye, _Aye_" the screen changed to the insignia again before flickering to show a slightly sleepy Rebi.

"_Naomi? What are you doing ringing me at this time of the night?_"

"Rebi, something terrible has happened" Naomi said. "The Argus array picked up distress calls from the Alba. She was under heavy attack from four unknown vessels, and we've not heard from her since" and she watched as Rebi's face went a deathly shade of white.

"_Not Azan…_" Rebi whispered.

"He could have defeated them but lost his comm systems, but you know he'd find a way to get a message to us" Naomi said. "Starfleet is sending out a Task Force to investigate what happened and try to recover the ship and crew if possible"

"_I want to come_" Rebi said almost as soon as his friend stopped speaking.

"You're the first person I've spoken to" Naomi assured him. "You've new orders to get back to Earth as soon as possible" she added.

"_Smoke me a kipper, I'll be back for breakfast_" Rebi said, then after a few minutes talking to his old friend he left the screen.

"Admiral, I've got that information" Tessa said.

"Thanks, Tess" Naomi looked at the information that blinked onto her display screens. "Say, you want a trip on a Starship?"

#

"Helm, all stop. Bring the ship about to 313 mark 225" Rebi said as he stepped onto the bridge.

"Aye, Captain" his young helm officer said as he brought the ship to a halt – changing the orientation as he did so.

"What's up, Captain?" asked Rebi's first officer.

"I'll tell you later" he replied. "Bridge to Engineering"

"Engineering"

"Standby to go to immediate transwarp drive"

"I'll have to get the Chief's permission for that, Captain"

"I'll handle the Chief Engineer" Rebi told the duty officer. "Standby for maximum power"

"Aye, Sir. Engineering, out"

"Helm, set a course for Earth – maximum Transwarp" Rebi said. "Yellow Alert! Shields to maximum" and the activity on the ship became a touch more hurried at the increased alert status.

"Course plotted and laid into navigational computers" the helm officer said.

"Engage" and the ship jumped to Transwarp speeds. "Number One, I want a complete report on this ship's operational status and torpedo supplies. Get crews working on that scientific equipment we're carrying for that mapping mission. I want it packed up into the crates before we get back to Earth." Rebi issued orders as he came up with thoughts. "Have another crew work on making torpedo storage racks. I want a level three diagnostic of all primary systems, and a level four of the entire backup system"

"Aye, Sir" the first officer had never seen Rebi be so concerned about something.

"Coming up on full Transwarp power, Captain" helm reported.

"Steady as she goes, Helm. Keep to maximum power on the drive. Maintain course and speed" Rebi said. "I'll be in the ready room, and I do not wish to be disturbed. You have the Bridge, number one"

#

"What the hell happened?" Naomi was not surprised by Rebi's first question.

"We still don't know" she said. "If Azan was able to defeat them, then he either lost his comm array or he has gone radio silent. If he has done that, then he must have a good reason"

"When do we get going?" Rebi asked.

"In three days" Naomi replied. "The task force is going to be made up of the entire Voyager class fleet, so its taking a fair while to get them all back here. If you don't mind, I'll be commanding the group from the Seven of Nine"

"It would be my honour, Naomi" Rebi said. "I'll have a special compartment made ready for the Nova Bomb" he added.

"You can't tell anybody what it is for, Rebi – you know that" Naomi warned him.

"I'll tell my crew it is to hold any radioactive debris we might encounter" Rebi assured his friend.

"You've got a day and a half before the last ships returns here. Why don't you go and visit your wife and family?" Naomi suggested.

"I'd rather oversee the resup of my ship" Rebi said. "I want to get under weigh as soon as possible"

"I thought you'd say that" Naomi handed him a sheet of paper.

"Whats this?"

"Formal orders to visit your wife and child. I trust I'll see you tomorrow evening for the memorial service?" and Rebi nodded.

"I wouldn't miss it for all the tea in china" he smiled and left Naomi's office for a transporter pad.

#

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for coming here at such short notice. Two days ago, the Argus Array picked up a distress call from the USS Alba"

"That's Captain Azan's ship, isn't it?" asked Ary Boender – sitting at the end of the long table.

"Quite so" Naomi smiled. She pressed a button on the small pad and the hidden speakers began to play Azan's static laced voice.

"_MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY This is the USS Alba to Starfleet Command. We are under attack by unknown vessels which refuse to respond to hails. We have taken heavy damage fro at least four ships. We are attempting to disable and evade. Starfleet Command, this is the USS Alba under atta-_" Azan was cut off by Naomi.

"The message ended at that point" she said. "We know that they were under attack by at least four ships, and perhaps even more than that. It is possible that whoever attacked the Alba took prisoners or captured the ship as well as the crew. Whatever the reason, we're going to travel to the position indicated to be the course of the distress call with orders to retrieve any and all surviving members of the crew, and to recover any parts of the ship possible" Naomi looked at the assembled officers before her.

"Then, with respect" Boender said, "What the hell are we doing waiting here?"

"Your ships are being stocked with additional torpedoes – taking the place of the probes you would normally carry" Naomi said. "Final loading should be completed in an hour. One last thing... I am in charge of the Task Force aboard the _Seven of Nine_. If anything should happen which leaves me unable to continue, Captain Boender will be in operational command. I think that is everything – your ships, please" Naomi waited until the officers had stood up before speaking. "Captain Rebi. Captain Boender. You will remain" and the pair hung back whilst the others left.

"Something the matter?" asked Boender.

"The line taken by Command is that the _Alba_ was lost with all hands. As you can imagine, it is a theory that I do not subscribe to in any measure. That ship was fitted out under my personal supervision when he took command of it, and the weapons are more then the norm for a refitted _Defiant_ class vessel" Naomi said. "Azan would have defeated them without a shadow of a doubt" she added.

"Perhaps he did but the ship had to be abandoned" suggested Boender.

"Maybe, or maybe the ship was too damage to make the trip at Transwarp" Rebi said. "Azan would have found the nearest habitable unpopulated world and gone into orbit. If there was a lot of damage to the structure, then he would have made the best repairs possible and then landed on the surface to carry out further repairs and await rescue"

"Land a _Defiant_ class?" Boender frowned. "That's never been done before"

"True" Naomi said, "But there is the ability to do so in the specs, and Azan would know that as he refitted his own vessel before he launched. Once we get to the location of the distress call, we'll come to normal space and start scanning for debris and any beacons. Your job, Ary, will be to monitor for all kinds of abnormal transmissions. Morse, reversed voice, polytone or even digital data transmission packet – you find Azan"

"I will find him" Boender assured Naomi.

"You better get back to your ship" Naomi told him. "We'll be leaving within the hour" and Boender nodded before leaving the briefing room.

"Don't you think you are pushing?" asked Rebi.

"Oh…" Naomi mock glared at her friend. "Don't you start! I was going to the _Voyager_ Memorial . You want to come with me?" she asked.

"I have my ship to prepare, and duty to perform"

"Stuff duty" Naomi told him firmly.

# # # # #

"ATTENTION ON DECK!" the Chief Petty Officer called. "Commander, Task Force 8901, arriving!" Naomi stepped through the airlock and onto the _Seven of Nine_.

"Permission to come aboard, Sir?" she asked Rebi.

"Permission granted, Admiral" he replied. "Welcome aboard the _Seven of Nine_"

"It's a pleasure to be back" Naomi replied. She had been on the ship twice before now – once to give both twins a tour of the ship, and again when Rebi took the ship out on a shakedown cruise after launching.

"Would you care to observe the departure from the bridge, Admiral?" asked Rebi.

"Thank you, Captain" Naomi replied. "I believe I shall do just that"

"Very good, Ma'am" Rebi turned to his crew. "Crew! Crew… dismiss!"

#

The turbolift doors opened and revealed an organised chaos that was a Bridge during launch. Rebi was sat in the centre seat and giving orders in a practice ease, and the Bridge crew responded quickly and efficiently to the commands. The Science Officer was the first person to spot Naomi and her aide standing in the turbolift.

"Admiral on the Bridge!"

"As you where" Naomi nodded.

"Welcome to the bridge, Admiral" Rebi swung in his chair to look at Naomi with a smile on his face. If it hadn't have been for one small detail change, she would have thought she'd stepped onto the _Mezoti_'s Bridge. The singular change was in that his chair was more in the style of the _Constitution_ and _Constellation_ classes. It gave the impression that the Captain was second only to God – God being above the Captain due only to seniority.

"Sir, ship's supplies are all aboard, and the airlocks closed and sealed" Rebi's first officer reported.

"Very good" Rebi said. "All hands, rig…" he paused, thought of something and then stood up from his chair. "Admiral, I'd consider it an honour if you took the ship out" Naomi took all of a microsecond to think about it before moving into the command area.

"Thank you, Captain Rebi" she said. Once settled into the chair and glancing around the Bridge, the Admiral felt the old thrill of starship command once more. "All hands rig for departure" she ordered.

"All decks and divisions report readiness" said the first officer.

"Operations, unseal the airlocks. Release docking clamps. Helm, standby on impulse drive" Naomi felt a little comfortable as she fell into the old routine.

"Airlocks unsealed" the Operations officer reported. "Docking clamps released"

"Impulse drive online" the Vulcan at the Helm replied.

"Clear all moorings. Signal the Quartermaster that we ready to depart" Naomi noted how good Rebi's crew were.

"All moorings cleared. Quartermaster signals we are cleared for departure"

"Aft thrusters…"

"Thank you, Helm" Naomi could just see the look of panic on Rebi's face as it dawn what she was going to do. "Ahead one half impulse power"

"Aye, Admiral" the Vulcan didn't find the order off at all. The mighty ship slipped her moorings and left the dock for the waiting stars. "We have cleared drydock" the woman said after a moment.

"Commander" Naomi turned to look at the First Officer, "Send the following signal to the rest of the fleet. Message begins: 'All ships form Pattern Epsilon on Flagship' that's it"

"Message sent…" the officer said. "All ships acknowledge"

"Helm, set course for co-ordinates 4289 by 5261 mark 080 – full Transwarp"

"Course plotted and laid in"

"All ships are in formation"

"Engage" and all the ships jumped to Transwarp and started on the journey to the Delta Quadrant. "Captain Rebi, the Bridge is yours" Naomi stood and turned the conn back to her friend.

"Thank you, Admiral" he slid into his seat and issued a few orders. Naomi remained a few more minutes before going below to her cabin to unpack her gear and relax after the hectic last couple of days she had been through.

#

"Captain, we've found enough fresh water to last us for an extensive period of time" the battered Science Officer said.

"Good" Azan wiped the brow of his head which dripped with blood once more. "See what you can find in regards to edible plants and stuff like that. If you see anyone from Medical, send them my way" he added. He sat in the shelter that had been set up near to where the _Alba_ had been landed, and looked up at his battered starship. Huge, gaping tears could be clearly seen in her once glistening hull, and Azan hoped that the message he had sent out had got through to Starfleet and a rescue ship would come for him and his crew. The fate of the _Alba_ was not looking good, but her main spaceframes were all in one piece, so all was not totally lost in that regard. The only thing that truly worried him was the fact that any rescuers wouldn't know about the ships that attacked them. By the time they had been identified, it was too late to send another message.

He just hoped they didn't come back to finish them all of first…


	2. The End of the Beginning

**The End of the Beginning **

"_Captain Azan from Commander Sidiki_"

"This is the Captain" Azan said.

"_Sir, we're picking up ships on our sensors_"

"Distance?"

"_Just dropping out of warp at the edge of the system, Sir_"

"Pass the word for all hands to stop using energy emitting tools, and shut down everything everything except the passive sensors" Azan ordered. "I'm on my way"

"_Aye, Captain. Sidiki, out_" and Azan began walking to the ship from the cave in which some of the crew lived. Some of his crew had objected to living like that, but he said that it was like a great big camping out trip. In order to use as little power as possible, all of the _Alba_'s exterior hatches were left open - and this was a good thing in two ways. Apart from providing fresh air throughout the vessel, it also reduced the amount of heat in the ship. This reduced the marker it would make on a thermal scan on the planet, and would buy them as much time as possible for rescuers to arrive and recover the ship and crew. In the time since they had landed, their attackers had come back several times to scan the area but had failed to find the _Alba_ on each of those occasions. If they had spotted the ship, then they were not giving it away. This worked on the fact the message had gotten through to Starfleet Command, and that they had assumed people had survived the attack and needed rescuing. As he climbed the ladder to the bridge, Azan wondered if Naomi would be leading the Task Force, or hijack a ship and head off on her own. He would not have placed odds either way.

#

"We are approaching the area the _Alba_ last reported to be in" said the Helm officer.

"Very well" Rebi said. "Standby to disengage the drive" and he hit a button on his chair arm. "Bridge to Admiral Wildman"

"_Wildman_"

"Naomi, we're approaching the location detailed by the _Alba_" Rebi said.

"_I'm on my way_" Naomi said. "_Wildman, out_" and within three minutes she was standing on the bridge with her aide.

"Yellew Alert!" Rebi said. It was still a standing order for all Starfleet vessels to go to Yellow Alert during the period just before and just after entering or leaving Transwarp space - a policy instituted by Naomi herself. "Send a message to the rest of the fleet to do the same"

"All ships report they are at Yellow Alert" his first officer said after a moment or two.

"Take us out of Transwarp" Rebi ordered, and the screen blurred as the _Seven of Nine_ reverted to normal space. "Sensor sweep" he said.

"Running sweep now, Sir" said the duty Science Officer. "No vessel contacts, Captain. My scopes are clear"

"Very well" said Rebi. "Begin scanning for debris"

"Aye" the man worked the console before him. "I am picking up some objects at the edge of the system, Sir. We'd have to be closer to get a better result" he said.

"Transfer the co-ordinates to the helm. Set course and engage at full impulse"

"Aye, Captain"

"Yes, Sir"

"Can you put me through to the _Icheb_?" asked Naomi.

"Of course, Admiral" Rebi said, pressing the buttons himself. "You can take the Engineering station for the call" Naomi walked over to sit at the station as one of the screens came alight.

"_Admiral_" Boender said in greeting.

"Ary, start monitoring for unusual transmissions of any sort. None of the rest of the fleet would know what to look for, though Rebi and myself could do a few simple decodes if push came to shove. I'll leave it up to you on how to start" Naomi said.

"_That is simple to order_" Boender said.

"How do you mean?"

"_It depends on how Captain Azan sent his message, and if he is still broadcasting. I could be searching for voice when he sent a message by data burst. I could miss it entirely, and if he is no longer on the air..._" he shrugged.

"One moment" Naomi said, and turned to the Science Officer. "Are there any pulsars in the local area up to three light years distant?" she asked.

"Three are within the area specified. The nearest one is one half light year distant, bearing 231 mark 090"

"Start looking in that direction" Naomi said as she swung back to the screen. "You remain on station here while we go and investigate the debris on sensors. If he sent anything by data burst, then he may have hidden it under the signal sent out by the pulsar"

"_Like detonating torpedoes while a ship explodes - to hide the sound_" Boender nodded.

"Good luck, Wildman, out"

"Sir, the _Chakotay_ is reporting contacts on the edge of sensor range"

"What sort?" asked Rebi.

"Some kind of space vessel. Three contacts at the moment. _Chakotay_ reports that they are… one moment… Captain! They are turning to intercept us"

"Can you tell if they have powered up weapons?" Naomi asked.

"I can not. However, they are masking their ships with some kind of energy barrier I have never seen before"

"RED ALERT! ALL HANDS TO BATTLE STATIONS!" Naomi and Rebi shouted at the same time.

"Contact the _Icheb_ and have them rejoin the fleet. Have all ships form on flagship" Naomi said.

"Aye, Ma'am" Rebi's first officer said.

"Put the ships on screen and hail the leading ship" Rebi said. The screen showed three large sphere like vessels – covered in smaller spheres connected to the main vessel. "Full intensity scan. Do they show Borg origin?" he asked.

"I am unable to penetrate the barrier. I am getting reflections of ourselves" the senior Science Officer said. He had taken over from the duty one when the fleet had gone to Red Alert.

"They are not responding"

"Open a channel" Naomi ordered.

"Channel open"

"This is Admiral Naomi Wildman of the United Federation of Planets. We are on a rescue mission for one of our fellow ships. Do you read me, over?" but there was no reply. "Run their size and configuration through the library computer. See if they match anything in our data banks" Naomi said.

"The ships do not correspond to any known configuration in Delta Quadrant registry of ships" the Science officer said.

"Anything from them?" asked Naomi.

"Not a peep" said Operations.

"Rebi?" Naomi looked at her friend with a questioning look.

"No idea" he replied. "It does not look like anything the Borg ever encountered" he tapped the end of one arm of his chair in thought. "I have, however, seen this sort of vessel before"

"Where?"

"I can't remember" Rebi apologised.

"Paint the lead ship with a target lock for the forward torpedo bays" Naomi ordered. "Lets see if that provokes them into a response"

"Aye, ma'am" the Tactical officer said.

"Science Officer. Expand the search to include any encounters with vessels like this in any point in history. Disregard Borg Spheres – this isn't a Borg type of ship" Rebi said.

"An idea?" Naomi said, moving to a place behind Rebi.

"Perhaps…" he muttered.

"Sirs?" the Tactical Officer said. "I'm reading a build up of energy from all three vessels"

"Helm, prepare for evasive action" Rebi said.

"Ready, Captain"

"I have found an exact match, Captain" the Science Officer said. "This type of ship was encountered nearly a hundred and fifty years ago by the starship _Enterprise_ – Captain James T Kirk commanding"

"That far back?" whistled the Operations Officer.

"Who is it?" Rebi asked – trying to think of the race.

"It appears to be a ship of the First-" but the Vulcan was cut off by the shout of the Tactical Officer.

"We're being targeted!" he called.

"Helm, evasive manoeuvres!" Rebi said.

"All ships open fire" Naomi said as the _Seven of Nine_ pitched and yawed from being hit by weapons. "Who the hell are they?" she asked.

"As I was about to say" the Science Officer said, "They appear to be ships from the First Federation"

"Unless they are a rogue group" said the Helm Officer.

"Signal the fleet to target all firepower on the leading vessel and fire!" Naomi said. "I thought we had friendly relations with the First Federation"

"We do" said Rebi. "But these may be a rogue element or others using First Federation vessels" he added. The ship shook from the attack, but the fleet gave as good as it got.

"I'm reading another starship dropping out of warp" said the Science Officer. "It's the _Icheb_"

"My compliments to Captain Boender, and would he care to engage?" Naomi said.

"Tactical report!" Rebi said, gripping the arms of his chair as the three enemy ships fired on _Seven of Nine_.

"We're not making that much of a dint in their shields, Sir" said his Tactical Officer. "I do have a suggestion though" he said.

"Don't keep it to yourself" Naomi advised him.

"If all ships form line astern and fire torpedoes dead ahead, then it might be possible to cause a fluctuation in their shields" the man said.

"And if that does not work?" asked the Helm.

"Then we run like hell" said the First Officer.

"I like that plan, Mister" Naomi said. "Have all ships standby on forward torpedo bays"

"Ready Quantum torpedoes" Rebi said.

"Fleet is ready"

"Then go" Naomi said, gripping the railing. "Come left and steer 090 mark 0 - Ahead full!" and the ship jumped into high speed with the rest of the fleet following behind it. "Standby to launch plasma torpedoes from the aft launchers" she said.

"Closing to minimum range" the Tactical Officer said.

"Maintain course and speed" Rebi said.

"Sir, we've passed the minimum distance for torpedo firing" Rebi's First Officer said.

"I know that"

"Sir, you're putting the ship in grave danger because of your emotional involvement"

"Point blank range!" called the Helm.

"Sir!" but Rebi ignored the plea and eyed the rapidly closing Sphere. "I have no choice but to remove you from command"

"Security to the Bridge" Naomi tapped her comm badge.

"FIRE!" Rebi said. "Pull up!" and the torpedoes flew from the ship and impacted on the shields of the First Federation ship. As the _Seven_ _of Nine_ swung up and out of the line of fire, the other ships fired their torpedoes into the same spot and took down the shields.

"Fire aft launchers" Naomi said as she handed her aide a phaser and whispered an order.

"Report!" Rebi said, looking at the blackened section of hull plating.

"We have taken out their forward shield. I am reading hull damage to about 3% of their forward compartments" Science reported. Nobody noticed Albright stepping into the command pit area.

"Target the exact same location – full power to weapons" Rebi said as the turbolift doors opened and admitted two members of security.

"Reporting as ordered" one of them said.

"I have relived the Capt-" but the First Officer was cut off by Naomi.

"Commander Donald is under close arrest" she said.

"_What_?"

"What is the charge, Ma'am"

"The charge is mutiny during battle, and also one of disrespecting the chain of command" Naomi said. "Commander Albright, ensure she gets to her quarters and then return to the bridge. You two stand guard on her door and admit nobody without either my or the Captain's permission" and the woman was taken away.

"Sir!" the Tactical Officer said. "We've breached their hull!"

"Have all ships target that spot and fire until they surrender or retreat" Rebi said.

"The _Chakotay_ has suffered damage to her impulse drive" said the Operations Officer.

"Have her retreat behind the rest of us and fire at range" Naomi said. She dearly wished for the rest of the fleet to warp in and lend a hand. Warp in… "Helm, prepare for Warp Speed" she said over the loud voices.

"Naomi?"

"Remember that time we disabled that Orion pirate ship by bumping the shields at warp?" Naomi saw the look of comprehension dawn on Rebi's face.

"Forward shields down to 45%" the Tactical Officer said.

"Transfer power from the aft shields to the forward emitters" Rebi said. "Helm, enter this course plot"

"Aye, Captain. Course sequence entered and ready"

"All hands, this is the Captain. Prepare for some bumps. Helm, Warp 3 – Engage!" and the ship jumped to warp and smashed over the top of the other ship's shields – causing them to flicker and fail. "All weapons that come to bear – Fire!" and the aft weapons fired into the unprotected rear of the vessel. The rest of the fleet joined as they returned the fire and punishment handed out to them – eventually breaching the shields and causing more hull damage.

"Have the fleet split into groups and attack engineering spaces" Naomi said.

"Aye, Aye, Sir" Rebi said, and he transmitted the orders to the other ships. It became a slugging match as both sides exchanged fire - though the First Federation vessels just took all the punishment they could give.

"Admiral. Captain" the Science Officer said. "I am reading increased impulse emissions from all three enemy ships"

"Ram us?" Rebi said. "They could easily do that without any trouble and little damage to themselves"

"They are changing position" but before anything else could be said, the three fired one last blast and then warped out of the system.

"Bastards!" Naomi slammed the phaser controls, but they had already gone too far for the beam to hit either one.

"Admiral" the Operations officer spoke. "Captain Boender requests permission to pursue and destroy"

"Tell him to remain here" Naomi said.

"Stand down to Yellow Alert" Rebi ordered. "I want constant scanning on the course they left. All stations - damage report"

"We've suffered hull damage on multiple decks" said the Bridge's duty Engineering officer. "We have also taken damage to main power grid in sections 23 through 37, on decks 13 through 19"

"Phaser capacity down to 73%. Torpedo systems at full operational status"

"Sensor resolution down to 89%"

"Port impulse reactor has been disabled. Starboard has been reduced to 56%of rated capability. Warp and Transwarp fully operable"

"We've lost some turbolift shafts. I'm engaging priority status to those destinations nearest the damaged sections" the Operations officer finished the general report.

"Bridge to Sickbay" Naomi tapped the button herself. "Sickbay, this is the bridge. Please respond!" but there was no answer. "Operations?"

"I am reading damage to their comm system link"

"Engineering. Reroute comm system so that we can communic-" a massive tremour shookmost of the crew from thier places. "What the hell was that?" Rebi asked.

"COOLANT LEAK!" the Engineering officer and the Science officer both said.

"Where?" Rebi demanded.

"Engineering section. Near the Transwarp drive"

"Seal off that section and vent the compartments" Rebi ordered.

"Unable to comply, Captain" the Engineering officer said. "I am unable to engage automatic systems"

"What sort of coolant is it?"

"Kel gas"

"Captain, the gas has entered the ship's ventilation systems. Estimate fifteen minutes until exposure of the crew is at lethal levels" the Operationsofficer said.

"Bridge to Engineering. Engine Room, please respond" but nobody answered Rebi's call.

"Communications must be off down there as well" Naomi said, examing the situation on the the Bridge Master Display. Red markers indicated where damage had been taken, and a green splodge showed where the gas was at the moment. Rebi stood by her side and looked at the information as it came in.

"Do we have a turbolift running to that location?" he asked.

"Just the one, Sir. Turboshaft 3"

"What is the concentration of the gas in the area of the leak?" he asked.

"37%" the Science officer said. "Anything over 70% and death is certain"

"I can not raise any engineers" Operations said. Rebi looked and saw how the gas was reaching to all areas of the ship, and he came to a not too difficult decision.

"I'll go and fix it myself" he said. "Admiral, take the Conn" and he entered the turbolift which whisked him away to the bowels of the ship. Naomi fingered the chair but did not sit down in it - it was not her place to do so.

"We don't have internal communications, but what about ship to ship?" she asked.

"Unreliable" came the reply.

"Put me through to the nearest ship"

"Captain Boender, on audio"

"Captain, this is an emergency situation. You and the rest of the fleet are to begin evacuation of the ship. Leave those in the engineering spaces and the bridge. We've suffered a Kel gas leak, and it is spreading through the ventilation systems. Repairs are underway now, but I don't want to take any chances"

"_Aye. Readying transporter rooms_" Boender's voice was laced with static.

"Seal off the bridge from the rest of the ventilation system" Naomi ordered, and huge valves closed and sealed off the bridge from the rest of the air supply.

"Master at Arms reports crew mustered and evacuation proceeding"

"Very well" Naomi said. "Standby to engage the ventilation systems the moment they come back online" she ordered.

"Aye, Ma'am" the Operations officer said.

"Captain Rebi, this is the Bridge. Do you read me?" Naomi called.

"Comm system is still in shreds" came a reply.

"Link into shuttlecraft systems. Route communications through their circuits" Naomi said.

"That isn't in the manual"

"No, but it worked for us back on _Voyager_" Naomi looked around the bridge.

"Systems linked" said Operations.

"Rebi – this is Naomi. Can you read me, over?" she called.

"Captain, I'm picking up faint lifesign readings near the leak. They are the Captain's. It appears as if he is not moving. He may have knocked himself out after hitting piping" said the Science Officer.

"Scan again" Naomi ordered.

"Readings confirmed. If the leak is not stopped soon, then the ship will be completely uninhabitable"

"To heel with that, I'll go and fix it myself. Commander, please assume command of the bridge. I'm going below" and Naomi jumped out of the centre seat and raced to get below.


	3. Finding Azan and Twists

**Finding Azan and Twists**

"Status report!" Naomi walked onto the bridge of the _Seven of Nine_. Rebi had been found by her slumped on the deck by the main pump. He had got a face full of gas, stumbled backwards before hitting his head on the bulkhead and got himself knocked out cold. Naomi had fixed the leak herself, began pumping affected areas out into space and called the Bridge to inform them they could return the crew to the ship after each deck was decontaminated.

"All repairs to the hull have been completed"

"Admiral, Captain Magner reports detecting faint warp trails at the outer edge of the system" the Science Officer said. "I have gone over the scans, and they may be the signature of a _Defiant_ class vessel"

"We'll head in that direction" said Naomi. "Have the fleet form up in formation. Set course 158 mark 21 – ahead Warp 6.9" and the fleet came together, turned as one and jumped into warp. "Keep a constant scan going for our friends returning. I want to know the moment that they come within range. I don't fancy another meeting with them any time soon"

"Aye, Captain"

"Bridge to Sickbay"

"_Sickbay_" the Doctor's voice came over the link.

"How is Rebi?"

"_He is doing well. I am keeping him under for another few hours to allow his body to heal. Once I have released him from Sickbay, I recommend he has bed rest for two days_"

"But?"

"_But I know he will want to be up there as soon as possible_" Naomi would have sworn she heard the smile. "_Three hours and he should be awake. After that, I'll run a few tests on him before releasing him for twenty four hours bed rest_"

"Let me know the moment that he is awake" Naomi said. "Bridge, out. Somebody tell me when was your last readiness drill" Naomi glanced around the Bridge.

"Last year, Admiral" said the Vulcan Science Officer.

"Then I would say it is time to do it again" Naomi hit the all ship intercom. "General Quarters! General Quarters! All hands prepare to repel boarders! All hands prepare to repel boarders. Record the times, and plan out additional training slots to get it under four minutes" Naomi sat back and waited.

#

**Three Weeks Later**

"We have arrived at the outer edge of the system, Captain" the Helm reported.

"Very well" Rebi hit the panel on his arm. "Bridge to Admiral Wildman"

"_Wildman_"

"Admiral, we have arrived at the outer edge of the system. Per your orders, the fleet has come to a halt"

"_I'm on my way. Wildman, out_"

"Science Officer, begin long range scanning of the system. Determine if there are any lifeforms we should avoid. I also want you to scan for Federation power signatures"

"Aye, Captain" the Bolian started work.

"What do we know about this system?" asked Rebi.

"Fourteen planets in total, Captain. Most of them are gaseous, however five are rock surfaces. Of those, two could support life for some time. The first one is an ice world with temperatures as low as -20 degrees"

"Rather cold for long term habitation" said the duty Tactical Officer.

"But not outside liveable conditions" replied the Bolian. "The planet is extremely cold, but it could serve as a refuge to the _Alba_ if it was forced to crash or emergency land"

"What about the other planet?" Rebi asked as the turbolift doors opened and admitted Naomi.

"Planet is Class M. Atmospheric mix is about Earth normal. Hotter climates around the equator, five continents and four separate oceans. I am reading indications of islands, lakes, mountains and other typical planetary features… They could well have landed there"

"Have you picked up anything on sensors?" asked Naomi.

"Not yet" came the reply.

"We don't even know if Azan came this way" Rebi said. "If his ship was as badly damaged as he claimed in the mayday… His navigational systems could be compromised, and he might have headed into the sun without even knowing about it until it was too late"

"I don't think so, Reb" Naomi shook her head. "I would have sensed his death"

"Telepathic are we?" her friend asked with a small smile.

"No, but we would have found debris at the battle site. What we did find was not enough to constitute destruction of the _Alba_. Gut instinct tells me we'll find him and the ship"

"Excuse me, but I have completed a long range scan of the entire system" the Bolian said.

"Let me have it, Mr Mot" Rebi said.

"I have detected the passage of several ships in the last three weeks. Configuration of their energy patterns suggest those of the First Federation"

"Son, you've earned your pay for the week" Naomi said.

"Have you got entry vectors?"

"Yes, Sir"

"Pass them to helm" Rebi said. "All hands, Yellow Alert"

"Signal the fleet to do the same. Have all ships assume arrow formation on flag" Naomi said.

"Aye, Admiral" the Operations officer said. The fleet took up position with _Seven of Nine_ as the lead ship in the formation. "All ships report full readiness"

"Helm, on those coordinates, ahead one half impulse" Rebi said, and the mass of ships moved to follow the trial left behind by the First Federation vessels.

"How close do we come to the Class M planet?" asked Naomi.

"500,000 kilometres" the science officer reported.

"I want all sensors that bear that way to conduct high intensity scans of as much of the planet as possible" Naomi said.

"I have not picked up any Federation engine signatures" the Science officer said.

"They may have faded by this time. It was some months ago" Rebi pointed out.

"Sirs" the Tactical officer called. "I am reading a mass of ships on the edge of sensor range"

"What? Here? Can you identify?" Rebi swung round.

"Three ships…" came the reply. "They have increased speed to Warp 2. Getting clearer sensor resolute – ENEMY VESSELS DEAD AHEAD!"

"Red Alert!" Rebi said. "All power to forward shields and weapons arrays" he added.

"Helm, begin evasive pattern Alpha Echo Three" Naomi said. "Tactical, load torpedo tubes with plasma torps. They should go through the shields. Follow up with a double volley of Borg torpedoes"

"Yes, Ma'am"

"Nai? You wanna take her?" Rebi asked.

"The seat is yours, Rebi" Naomi smiled.

"I meant the Helm, you idiot"

"That's a superior officer you are speaking to"

"No, merely a higher ranking one" Rebi laughed as Naomi moved to the Helm.

"I relieve you" she said.

"Aye, Aye, Admiral. I am relieved. You have the Helm"

"I have Helm" Naomi replied as she slipped into the chair. "Hey, Rebi? Which one is forwards?"

"The Red button"

"Ah…" the play helped to dispel some the memories of the previous encounter. "Coming right through 315" she announced. "Now passing 320"

"Full impulse. Prepare to open fire" Rebi ordered.

"Ahead full"

"Weapons on standby"

"Now in visual range" said the Science officer.

"On screen" and the three Spheres loomed large on the screen. None of the damage inflicted could be seen, and it frightened everyone to think of the fight they must want.

"Sweet lord…" somebody muttered.

"Starboard twenty. Steer 340"

"Starboard twenty" Naomi confirmed. "Steer 340" and the ship swung round a little more.

"Reconfirm targeting lock"

"Aye. They will enter weapons range in thirty seconds"

"Open a hailing frequency" Rebi said. "Lets see if we can unnerve them somehow"

"Frequency open" Operations reported.

"First Federation vessels, this is Captain Rebi of the Starship _Seven of Nine_. You are about to pass by us with your offensive systems engaged whilst we're in unclaimed space. Do you wish to engage?"

_Thump_

"I guess they do" said Naomi.

"Have all ships target our location" said Rebi. "Fire" and the fleet launched weapons at one small spot on a single Sphere. Unlike last time, the shields flared and then failed which allowed the torpedoes to puncture the hull of the offending vessel.

"Direct hit!" the Tactical officer said.

"Random attack patterns" Naomi said.

"You wish for them to be one step behind" Rebi said.

"Might buy us more time" she replied, swinging the ship around to port. Phaser lashed out at the unprotected spot and gouged deep wounds into the hull. "Scan those ships" Naomi ordered. "Did they suffer more damage then we could have previously thought?"

"Scanning… Admiral, I am unable to locate the three ships on main sensors" the Vulcan officer was surprised.

"But I can see them" said Rebi.

"As do our targeting computers" added the Tactical Officer.

"And main sensors spotted them in the first place…" Naomi mused. She tapped at the Helm and the _Seven of Nine_ swung around and headed at full speed for the nearest First Federation vessel.

"Admiral, I'd like to know what you plan on doing with my starship" Rebi said.

"This" and Naomi sent the vessel into warp – sending them gliding through the opposing vessel without hitting anything at all.

"Holoprojectors" somebody muttered.

"Science station, what is the energy output of the ship we just passed through?" asked Rebi

"Power signature matches that of a _Delta Flyer_ class shuttle"

"I wonder…" Rebi said. "Tactical, stand down from Red Alert. Have the other ships do the same"

"Sir?"

"Do it"

"You thinking what I am?" asked Naomi, allowing the duty Helm officer to resume their station.

"I think we have found our first clue as to where our missing friend is" said Rebi. "Send a message on subspace frequency 8142 in code E06"

"Aye, Sir" the Operations officer said. "Anything I should put in it?"

"Standard hailing packet" Rebi said. "Lets see if this works first"

"Aye… I am receiving an acceptance message back" the officer said.

"Send the following message" Rebi said. "Send it compliments of 759" he added and tapped the message to his subordinate.

_87307 12936 00152 59659 39588 02505 14896 98261 08823 89660 **50493 57253 18540 59782 59964 27434 26053 92781 56139 54454 41675 24970 44802 22791 42069 86012 73024 17170 71146 71918** **78085 84861** **78085 84861**_

"Sending secret messages?" Naomi looked at the message Rebi typed out. "Captain Boender would be proud of you"

"I am getting a reply" the Operations officer said after a few short minutes, "Audio only"

"Let's hear it" Naomi said.

"_This is Captain Azan of the _USS Alba_ to any Starfleet or Federation vessel. We have been attacked whilst on a peaceful mission of exploration. After inflicting damage on one vessel, we lost all main power. After making essential repairs to the warp drive, we managed to make our way to the system beyond the one you are in now. With the amount of system failures, I took the decision to land the _Alba_ on the surface of the forth planet_"

"Long range sensors" said Rebi. "I want to know everything that is in the database and what is going on in this exact second"

"Scanning"

"_Oh_" Azan's voice returned, "_Would you mind bringing back our shuttlecraft? We want our deposit back when we get home_"

"The cheeky bugger" Naomi laughed.

"_Request urgent medical and engineering support from any vessels. We have limited ability to repair our ship, and our supplies are running low. Azan, out_"

"Captain, I am reading a five planet system five light years away. The planet that Captain Azan said he landed on is much like the inhabitable planet in this system" the Science officer said. "I understand why he choose not to land on this one"

"Why?" asked Naomi.

"I am reading a Pre-Warp civilisation existing on the surface"

"Could this be a trap?" asked the Tactical officer.

"I doubt it" said Rebi. "Azan would know that I would be part of any rescue operation, and so programmed the shuttles to accept the message I sent to them. Operations, contact the shuttlebay and arrange for them to land on another shuttle. I want it put in the special operations hanger"

"Aye, Captain"

"Have _Icheb_ take the other two aboard" Naomi put in. "Perhaps Ary can decipher any encrypted data placed in the memory banks"

"It would be something he'd do" Rebi agreed. "Helm, set course…" he checked the readout on his console, "…286 mark 49"

"Aye Sir"

"Lay it into the computer, and stand by to engage at Warp 9"

"Course plotted, laid in and standing by on warp drive"

"Damage reports coming in from all stations" the Engineering officer said. "We have damage to our starboard impulse drive, minor hull buckling on decks 4 through 9, EPS rupture on deck 5 and the ship's swimming pool is now in the library"

"Alright…" Rebi shrugged at Naomi.

"Shuttle is aboard"

"Open a channel to the fleet" Naomi ordered.

"Channel open"

"This is Admiral Wildman. All ships are to follow us in battle formation at constant Yellow Alert. We believe that we have found the location of the _Alba_, but we don't want to take any chances meeting our friends once more. Prepare to receive new orders from the _Seven of Nine_. Wildman, out"

"You don't wish to go now?" Rebi was surprised.

"Open a secured line to the _Icheb _and _Mezoti_" Naomi said. When it was done, she ordered both ships to engage the cloak device and rig for silent running. If the First Federation ships lay in wait for them, they might actually drop their guard seeing fewer ships. The fleet jumped into warp and headed on what they hoped would be the last of the outbound legs to find their comrades and return them to Federation space.

#

**Starfleet Command**

"Sir, long range sensors on the Argus Array have picked up indications of Transwarp drive" a crewman said.

"Our fleet?" asked Admiral Hoshi.

"I don't think so, Sir" the crewman said, transferring his display to the main viewer. "As you know, we can not pick up the actual ships in transit but when they are forced to drop out of warp for a navigational fix. Only _Voyager_ class ships are equipped with Borg derived drives to allow extended use"

"Can you identify the type of ships?" asked Hoshi. "Could this be remnants of the Borg?"

"No, Sir" the crewman said. "Sensor logs indicate no use of Borg power systems. I ran the readings through the computer, and they have indicated that we have encountered the ships before. Or rather the ship types"

"Who?"

"First Federation" the crewman said.

"Sweet lords…" Hoshi breathed. "Do we know how many?"

"Three, Admiral, and they are on a direct course for Earth. Presuming they keep to known Transwarp speeds, they will enter Sector 001 in a minimum of twelve hours"

"You" Hoshi pointed at the nearest officer. "Have all ships in range converge on Pluto. Starfleet Code 1. This order supersedes any other mission including humanitarian and rescue. All Starfleet vessels are to go to Red Alert"

"Aye, Sir"

"Admiral Hoshi to Transporter Central"

"_Yes, Sir_" the reply came a moment later.

"This is a Priority 1 emergency. Lock on my signal and transport me to Paris"

"_Understood. Standby_"

"Pray God its not to late"

#

**Fifteen Hours Later**

"Sir, we are approaching the outer edge of the system" the duty Helm officer said.

"Understood" the Duty officer said. "Captain Rebi, please report to the bridge. Captain Rebi to the Bridge, please"

"_Captain here_"

"Sir, we are approaching the outer edge of the system. I thought you would like to know"

"_The Admiral and myself will be on our way_._ Captain, out_"

"Science Officer! Begin scanning the system. Look for traces of First Federation power systems and drive units. Standby to come out of warp, Helm"

"Aye, Sir"

"As ordered, Commander" and the Bridge's background sounds went higher as scans were started. A minute or two later, and Rebi and Naomi stormed out of the turbolift.

"Admiral on the Bridge!"

"Battlestations!" Naomi ordered, and the entire fleet came to full combat readiness. The lighting dimmed throughout _Seven of Nine_ as the alert strips threw shadows over the decks and bulkheads.

"Shields up, phasers and disrupters charged, forward torpedo bays ready – tubes ready to fire" the Tactical officer said.

"I am detecting no signs of First Federation vessels in the system" the Vulcan officer said. Naomi made a note to actually remember her name one of these days. "I am, however, picking up the indications of a Federation power source emanating from the fifth planet"

"Helm, slow us to Warp 3" Rebi ordered.

"Sir, regulations dictate that we drop out of warp before continuing on course"

"I am well aware of that" Rebi said. "The order stands"

"Aye, Sir" and the fleet slowed down as they passed the inner most planet.

"Assuming that they are on passive sensors only" Naomi said, "How long until they can pick us up?" she asked.

"Assuming that the _Alba_'s sensors were not totally damaged, and assuming repairs were carried out using parts from probes, I would estimate three minutes from now" the officer said. For a Vulcan, she sure looked like emotion was not unfamiliar to her.

"Send a message to the _Chakotay_ and the _Mezoti_" said Rebi. "Tell them to drop out of cloak"

"Message sent"

"Computer, open intraship and route the signal through the rest of the fleet"

'_Channel open_'

"All personal, this is Admiral Wildman. We have arrived at the system told to us by Captain Azan. We do not know what condition the ship and crew are in. I want two crews from the departments of Science, Engineering and Medical from all ships to transport the moment we enter orbit. Transport coordinates to be sent from the _Seven of Nine_. Wildman, out"

"Stand down from Red Alert" Rebi said. "Science Officer, scan the planet's surface. Can you locate the _Alba_?" he asked.

"Scanning… Scanning… I have located them on the largest of the continents" the Vulcan said. "I am reading only the ship, but there is an operable power source. It is faint, but definitely there"

"Drop out of warp, Helm" Naomi gave the order herself – a privilege she had as Task Force Commander. "One half impulse power – assume a standard orbit"

"Pass that location to the other ships, Commander" Rebi said

"I have already done so, Sir"

"Nicely done" muttered Naomi.

"Attention all hands, this is the Bridge. I want all senior officers to report to Transporter Room 3 on the double. Away Teams be ready to beam down the moment supplies are ready for transport. Captain, out" Rebi flicked off the comm and stood up from his chair. "I'm going ashore with the landing party" he said. "I want constant scans of the area, and forward torpedo tubes kept loaded at all times. Lieutenant Cornwall, you have the bridge" and he, Naomi and several officers left in a slightly packed turbolift for the Transporter.

# # # # #

"I'll put you down near the huts, Sirs" the Transporter operator said, and then did the buttons that sent them to the surface of the planet below. Groups of ragged Starfleet crewmembers stood around as the teams started beaming down.

"Our group has travelled far and hard" the Doctor said, opening his arms wide.

"Take us to your leader" added Rebi.

"We come in peace, and expect to go home in one…" Naomi said.

"Admiral…?" a voice caused them to turn around. Standing in a crumpled and well worn uniform was Azan.

"I've a good mind to write you up for untidy uniform, Captain" Naomi smiled as she hugged one of her best friends.

"Where is your medical facility, Mr Azan?" asked the Doctor. "As you can see, we've brought out the picnic basket"

"I was beginning to think that we wouldn't get any rescue" said Azan. "As you can see" he went on as he hugged his twin and the Doctor, "We have taken heavy damage and a number of serious injuries. We have status pods working, but we all need proper medical treatment. A good meal would be very welcome as well" he added.

"We came out with the rest of the _Voyager_ class" said Rebi.

"You have to be joking" said Azan – jaw dropping in astonishment.

"We'll have you know that we broke the record for the most ships in formation Transwarp" Rebi said proudly.

"So what happened?" asked Naomi.

"Come inside" Azan said, "And I'll tell you everything"

#

"… and went quieter then a church mouse" Azan finished the tale after more then three hours of talking.

"I don't suppose anybody could have done better under the circumstances" said the Doctor.

"Naomi could" said Azan with a smile. "She has that 'gut feeling' of something being wrong. That is a skill me and Rebi will never master"

"Actually, that 'gut feeling' is the Vulcan spice soufflé I had for lunch" Naomi grimaced.

"I see" Azan laughed heartily. "May I ask for you orders regarding my ship?" he asked.

"My principal orders are to recover the surviving crew of the _Alba_. Recovering the ship is a secondary objective" Naomi said. "I have orders to scuttle her if it proves that we can't get her into space again"

"But…?"

"We've been working on plans to get the ship up" she admitted. "Ary Boender suggests sealing the ship up completely – as per normal. What we'd do, though, is to fill the decks and crawl-ways with a lighter then air gas, and reduce the strain on take off. We'd also be using shuttles to give you a bit of a tow" Naomi looked at her friend. "If your ship is capable of getting into space, we'll carry you home on the hanger deck"

"There would not be much room" Azan noted.

"Actually, we'd beam you into the hanger deck" said Rebi. "We'd tie all of our transporters into the effort, but it would just about work" he told his twin.

"I would like to see the plans later" Azan said, "But I suppose you'd better know about the Tholians, Malons and Hirogen"

"What about them?" Naomi narrowed her eyes.

"They attacked us – not the First Federation"


	4. We Sail To War

**We Sail To War**

"Admiral, we're not getting any readings for the main power systems"

"Still?" Naomi sighed. "Try energising the auxiliary systems first. Once they are running, try a ram boost to the core" and the technician nodded.

"Aye, Ma'am. Energising now" and started working on their console once again.

"I have managed to get partial battery power" Azan said from over the other side of the Alba's Engine Room.

"What does that give us?" asked Naomi.

"Communications only" Azan said.

"Better then nothing" said Naomi. "Engine Room to bridge" she called.

"_Bridge - Captain Rebi_"

"Dont get comfortable on my bridge" Azan warned his twin.

"Rebi, we have internal communications by using battery power only. We'll work on getting the internal sensors working in a minute" Naomi said.

"_Understood. Is there any chance of you siphoning anything to the bridge consoles?_"

"One minute" Naomi said, working the console in front of her. "Try it now"

"_They have powered up in the far side of the bridge. That will do for us until you are able to restore impulse power_"

"Understood" Azan said. "And take your feet off the console"

"_How did you know?_"

"Lucky guess. Azan, out"

"Seven of Nine_ to Admiral Wildman_"

"Wildman, go ahead"

"_We're picking up a message from Starfleet Command_"

"Patch it through" she said.

"_Can't do that, Admiral. It is encoded for senior officers only_"

"Very well" said Naomi. "Have the other Captains gather in the briefing room. Stand by to beam us aboard"

"_Aye, Ma'am._ Seven of Nine _out_"

"Sounds important if Starfleet risks sending a message by transwarp" said Azan.

"Something tells me that it is not good news" Naomi said. "They must have used one of those experimental transwarp probes so it could follow us" she added. "Naomi to Rebi"

"_Rebi_"

"Be ready to beam up to the ship. Starfleet have got a message for us"

"_Aye, Standing by_"

"Wildman to _Seven of Nine_. Lock on to myself, Azan and Rebi. Energise" and they were taken away.

# # # # #

"Have you downloaded the message?" Naomi asked.

"I have"

"Please leave the room, and ensure that nobody disturbs us" Naomi said, waiting for the officer to leave before speaking again. "Computer, begin play back of message. Authorisation Naomi Three Seven Gamma Echo"

"_Confirmed. Request second clearance code_"

"Computer, request play back of message. Authorisation Azan Two Two Charlie Papa"

"_Confirmed_" the computer said. "_Request third clearance code_"

"Computer, this is Captain Boender. Confirming playback of message. Authorisation: Boender Four Six Two Five"

"_Clearance codes confirmed. beginning playback_"

"_Admiral Wildman, this is Starfleet Command_" Admiral Hoshi's voice came over the speakers. "_We are under attack by a single sphere of a First Federation type. We have not been able to win a single battle since our first encounter. I am readying a fleet at Wolf 359 made up of everything that we have left, but I don't think that it will hold for very long – if at all. Your orders are to abort your mission, return to Federation space and assume command of any and all survivors. You are to take them into Klingon or Romulan space and join with them. If you are unable to do that, you are to lead the survivors to a suitable planet and start a colony there. Good Luck, Admiral. Starfleet out_"

"Suggestions, people" Naomi said.

"We should pack the _Alba_'s crew aboard the fleet, scuttle the ship and get back as quickly as possible" said Captain Magner.

"I disagree" said Boender.

"People could die if we don't go home now" said Magner.

"People have _already_ died" said Azan. "The fact that they sent this experimental probe with this message indicates Starfleet did not believe they would prevail. It further follows that few ships, if any, survived the attack. If, as Admiral Hoshi suggests, the lone vessel is immensely powerful, we might not be finding any survivors" he added.

"I agree with Azan and Captain Boender" said Rebi. "The fact only one vessel was used means that great destruction was caused. We barely survived facing three spheres"

"So we set up camp on the planet below?" asked Magner. Naomi looked at the gathered officers around the briefing room table, thought what she was going to say and then decided to do it anyway.

"We can repair the _Alba_ as best as we can, beam her up and then head out for that vessel" Naomi said.

"And suicide attack it?" asked Azan. "That is very unlike you, Naomi" he said.

"No" Naomi shook her head. "This ship is carrying the last Nova Bomb in existence. My plan is that we go back in time by five months, use full Transwarp and hope we get there before that thing does. Hopefully, we can get as big a fleet as we can. With the modifications that the Tholians, Hirogen and others have made to it, we're going to need all of the firepower we can get"

"Direct course to Earth?" asked Azan, but Naomi shook her head.

"A month before we left to get you, there was a large task group heading to the Savoy 1 tactical training range. After that, it was to go on patrol on the borders of the Romulan space for three months. Our aim will be to drop out there, take the fleet into our own and then head off to a point where we shall intercept the Sphere. If we can not get the _Alba_ fixed in that time, you'll go to Headquarters with news of what we are doing" Naomi said.

"Why only the one vessel?" asked Rebi. "Four of them attacked Azan, and yet three attacked us when we arrived in the locale" he added.

"The other ship must have been on its way to Earth whilst we travelled here" said Magner. "But why attack us like this?" he asked. "And, for that matter, what reasons do they have?"

"All of them are species that were defeated by Captain Janeway. They've been waiting all this time for a chance to get revenge on Starfleet and the Federation" Naomi said. "They either bought, stole or discovered First Federation vessels, added their own technology to them and launched the attack"

"Will a Nova Bomb stop something like that?" asked Boender.

"It stopped the Borg" and Naomi stood and left the room.

"Is she alright?" asked Boender.

"Mezoti died in that attack by making sure the bombs went off. Naomi gets… _upset_ when reminded by that" Rebi said.

"I was on the station to transfer to the _Arizona_ when we got news of her death. We all mourned her loss" said Boender.

"We could save time in repairing the ship" said Azan slowly.

"How?" asked Magner.

"The plan is to beam the ship up into the _Seven of Nine_'s shuttle areas. Instead of us repairing and then doing that, we could beam the ship up and do our time warp" Azan said.

"It might be better for us to get everything off that we can save and scuttle her" Magner said.

"To hell with what you think" said Azan. "That's my ship out there. How would you like it if I got the idea to blow yours up?"

#

Azan and Rebi put the plan into a proposal for Naomi to examine later on - both of them knew that she would need some time on her own.

"Never thought it would come down to this" said Azan. He was sat with his twin in the mess hall of the _Seven of Nine_ eating good and freshly replicated food. It was better than eating rations for months on end, though Azan did have a fondness for the mixed berry energy bars.

"Naomi will find a way to beat them" Rebi was confident. "She always finds a way to win"

"Against a target like that?" Azan asked, sipping the tea he was drinking. "We only just managed to beat the Borg"

"Do you have anything on that other ship?" asked Rebi. "I presume it was a ship of the same size" he added. He was therefore surprised when his twin shook his head.

"The other one was much bigger. It could have used the other three as lifeboats…" Azan suddenly clammed up and frowned in thought.

"What is it?" asked Rebi.

"What if that other ship is a carrier for the smaller ones?" Azan asked. "Like a carrier task force during World War 2 on Earth" and, as one, they ran for the door.

# # # # #

"Captain on deck" said the newly restored XO.

"Report" said Rebi.

"Transfer of people complete, Sir" she said. "We are going to warp in three, two, one and… warp" and the ships blinked away in a flash of light.

"Switch to tactical" Rebi said as he held the back of his chair. The main viewscreen changed to a grid pattern showing the fleet vanishing on the _Seven of Nine_'s way to the sun – getting faster as they did so.

"Activating neutrino burst" reported the science officer. "We are arcing around, increasing to warp 9.89… warp 9.95… they have vanished from my sensors, Captain" he reported.

"Scan area for vessels" said Rebi.

"I show no vessels other then ourselves"

"Very good. All stop" said Rebi. "Rebi to Admiral Wildman"

"_Naomi here_"

"We have journeyed back through time"

"_Very well_" said Naomi. "_Set course for the target location – best possible speed_"

"Aye, Admiral. Bridge out" he shut the link. "Helm, set course 010 mark 23 – full transwarp speed"

"Aye, Sir"

"Engineering. Bring the cloaking device online, please"

"_Aye, Captain. Beginning power up sequence now_"

"Course plotted and laid into computer" the helmsman said.

"Set initial speed as Warp 6 and engage" and the mighty ship jumped into warp.

"_Engineering to Bridge_"

"Captain"

"_Cloaking device online and awaiting your command_"

"Very good. Bridge out. All hands – Yellow Alert" and all stations became manned and ready twice. As they carried the _Alba_'s crew aboard with them, each station could be manned and ready with someone to take over if the console sparked and injured the user. It almost never did, but Starfleet consoles were made of Explodium after all.

"All decks report Yellow Alert, Sir" said the First Officer.

"Helm, engage the Transwarp drive" and the ship stretched as they went at much faster speeds then previous. "Activate the cloaking device" and the lights dimmed slightly as the machine made them invisible. "Status?"

"All decks and stations report normal operation"

"Stand down from Yellow Alert" Rebi said.

"On course for target location" the Helmsman said.

"Maintain course and speed, Helm. Steady as she goes" Rebi said.

"Aye, Aye, Sir"

"Call all senior officers of both ships to Holodeck Two at 14:30" Rebi said. "The XO has the deck" and he left for his quarters.

#

_**USS Icheb**_

"They have disappeared from sensors, Captain" said Boender's first officer.

"Very well" he said. "Set course 010 mark 23 – maximum warp" and the _Icheb_ came about, moved away from the planet and jumped into warp – following the _Seven of Nine_ at a slower speed. By following the plan Naomi had come up with, they would gain nearly a year on the repairs. Norcadia still, in Naomi's opinion, had a lot to learn about respecting Starfleet. They also, again in Naomi's opinion, had a great deal to pay yet for what they had done to _Voyager_'s crew all those years ago. Most repairs to the _Alba_ would be done whilst on passage to Norcadia. The remaining items would need a proper spacedock and associated equipment, and the nearest good facility was the planet. Ary knew that Naomi wanted to see what they would do after seeing _two_ federation vessels – both heavily armed. "Should be fun" he muttered.

"I did not catch your order, Captain" said his First Officer.

"I said 'maintain course and speed', number one"

#

"Some of you may know this already, but we are under weigh for Norcadia Prime to use their orbital facilities to complete repairs, and then proceed from there to the target location where we shall meet up with the fleet" Naomi said.

"But what about saving Starfleet?" asked Commander Sidiki – Azan's first officer.

"To hell with it!" Naomi said.

"What about the Temporal Prime Directive?" asked Azan.

"To hell with that as well" Naomi said. "We are going to go and do our stuff, go back in time and end this with a touch of my normal flair. Based on the scans taken by the _Alba_ during the battle, we have pinpointed weak areas in the construction of the Spheres. They have weakened shields around the area of the impulse exhausts. If we can pour firepower into that area, we might be able to bring them down in an overload. If that is possible, then we shall do everything possible to blast open her hanger doors so we can launch a Nova Bomb into her"

"How?" asked the Doctor.

"By way of a shuttle" Rebi said. "We hope that we can get it inside without much trouble. The pilot is taken off and the bomb is detonated by remote. That should destroy the thing – with any luck" he added.

"And if it is not?" asked the Doctor.

"Then we'll ram into it, hope to lodge ourselves into the hull and activate Self Destruct" Naomi said. "Either we're going down or they are. Those are the only two options, people. I want people reviewing known tactics for all Delta Quadrant species. Use the Holodeck to test simulations with all manner of variations" she looked around the room at the officers gathered – some having served with her before. "We sail to war, ladies and gentlemen, and we shall be victorious"

"I thought we were the _Seven of Nine_ – not the _Victorious_" said Azan after a long silence.

# # # # #

**One Year Later**

"Commander, I am picking up ships on the edge of sensor range" said the duty Science Officer.

"Can you identify them?" asked Albright.

"Not yet" came the reply. "I should have good contact with them in thirty seconds"

"Bridge to Captain Rebi, Captain Azan and Admiral Wildman"

"_Azan_"

"_Rebi_"

"_Wildman here_"

"Sirs, we're picking up what might be the fleet. We are waiting for them to get closer for confirmation"

"_We'll be there in _a moment" Naomi said. She finished speaking as they stepped out of the turbolift.

"Nice timing, Admiral" said Albright.

"Thank you"

"Sensors confirm it is the rest of the fleet" the Science Officer said.

"Hail them" said Naomi.

"Which ship?"

"_Icheb_"

"Captain Boender, on screen" Rebi said.

"Captain, are you ready to begin the journey home?" asked Naomi.

"_Ready when you are_" said Boender.

"Prepare your transwarp drive for use, Captain. Standby for time travel, Wildman out" Naomi said. "Captain Rebi, prepare for time travel"

"Aye, Admiral. Attention all hands, this is the Captain. Rig ship for time travel. Secure all systems and batten down the hatches. All decks, all divisions and all stations – yellow alert. Helm, plot a hyperbolic course around the sun – Warp 9.96"

"Aye"

"_Engineering to Bridge_"

"Go ahead"

"_Captain, we've suffered a loss of one of the main EPS circuits leading to the warp drive controls_"

"Meaning?"

"_Meaning that we will not be able to drop out of warp after we go into it_"

"Switch to back ups"

"_We… um…_"

"Spit it out" said Naomi.

"_Yes, Admiral. We're in the middle of a test of the back up systems_"

"You would pick a time…" Azan muttered from behind his twin. "This is Captain Azan speaking. Do you have the ability to eject the core still?" he asked.

"_Aye_"

"Very well. Be ready to eject the core after we have completed the time warp jump. The computer should automatically override the circuits and release controls to manual"

"_Captain_?"

"Do it" said Azan – pretending to be his twin. "Rebi out"

"You have got to stop being me" Rebi said.

"You have got to stop being me" Azan retorted.

"Do I have to separate you two?" Naomi asked. "Wildman to all vessels – engage"

_**And thus in the blink of an eye, so did the journey begin**_


	5. Sphere We Go, Sphere We Go, Sphere We Go

**Sphere We Go, Sphere We Go, Sphere We Go**

"Captain, our shields are down to 27%" the weapons chief said. "We will not sustain another hit from their firepower" she added.

"Can you divert any more power from other systems?" asked the Captain.

"Not a chance" said the operations officer.

"Helm, get us out of here – full impulse"

"Unable to comply" said the Vulcan helm officer. "Impulse drive is offline. Only thrusters remain online"

"Then get us out of here at full possible speed. Contact the task force and tell them we pulling out to effect repairs" the Captain said.

"Communications are damaged. Attempting to reroute"

"Captain!" the weapons chief and the helm officer spoke at the same time. "I'm reading another load of starships coming in"

"Can you identify?"

"It's the _Seven of Nine_ and Admiral Wildman's task force"

"Pray god it's not too late…" the Captain whispered.

#

**Before The Battle**

"Admiral on the bridge"

"As you were" Naomi said, nodding at the duty officer. "Just taking a look around" and walked around the deck – looking at various displays and talking to the crewmembers that manned the 'night' shift.

"Is there anything that I can do for you, Admiral?" asked the duty officer.

"No, not really. I just could never sleep before a battle. Me and my wife would either be having sex or snuggled on the sofa eating snacks as we watched old movies" Naomi said.

"I regret not serving with Commander Wildman" said the duty officer. "I have heard she was a fine woman and an excellent officer to serve under"

"She was" Naomi said. "Run a drill for me – simulated of course" she added. "We're heading to the battle and suddenly the transwarp drive starts to overload. Nothing that your teams do will make it safe, so you are obliged to evacuate and abandon the stardrive section" and the duty officer nodded.

"We'll alert engineering" she said.

"This is for the bridge crew only" said Naomi. "I will tell you when to start" she added, walking around, tapping a few commands into a console before jumping into the air and going "KABOOM"

"Sir, Engineering reports the transwarp drives has overloaded"

"Very well" said the duty officer. "Have them disengage – we'll go on warp speed"

"It will not disengage, Commander. We have about eight minutes until it goes critical" said the operations officer.

"Evacuate everybody from the stardrive section. Standby for an emergency saucer separation"

"Aye" and the science officer, having nothing to do, started making hissing noises like a damaged com link.

"_Bridge… doors… shut… won't release…_" Naomi said in broken up words.

"Bridge to Transporter Rooms. Start beaming people from the stardrive section now"

"_Aye_" Naomi replied.

"Nobody else coming off the stardrive section"

"Begin separation sequence" and several officers stamped their feet on the floor to simulate the undocking of the huge metal latches.

"We're clear and free to navigate" said the helm officer – having counted to twenty first of all.

"Plot us an escape course – Warp 3"

"Engaging"

"Well Admiral" the duty officer turned to Naomi. "How did we do for your little test?"

"You failed"

"Huh?"

"You didn't do a scan for lifeforms, and now our secrets lie in the hands of two Ferringi who will sell them on the black market" Naomi said.

# # # # #

It was several weeks later when they dropped out of transwarp space for a quick navigational check, and all the ships started scanning for any ships in the nearby area.

"Captain, sensors are picking up indications of a fight" said the Science officer.

"Where?" asked Azan – taking a spell on the bridge.

"Dead ahead of us" came the reply. "I can not get much more in terms of readings. There is a lot of inference from subspace shocks"

"Warp core detonations?"

"Possibly"

"Scan ahead for warp trails" Azan said. "Eliminate all Starfleet types and give me a report"

"Working… First Federation vessel! Bearing 000 mark 011!"

"Battlestations!" Azan ordered. "Open a channel to the fleet"

"Channel open"

"This is Captain Azan, speaking for Admiral Wildman. All ships go to Battlestations. This is not a drill. Standby to receive new battle orders. Admiral Wildman and Captain Rebi – to the bridge please"

"Already here" Rebi said.

"Sensors are picking up indications of the enemy vessel ahead of us" Azan said, moving out of the centre seat as Rebi slid into it. "There maybe a battle ongoing, but sensors are being thrown off by the detonation of warp cores"

"Time to intercept?" Naomi asked, coming out of a turbolift at a run.

"Fourteen minutes at maximum warp" said the helm officer.

"All ships report they are cleared for action" said the weapons officer.

"Engage" and the fleet jumped to warp and closed the distance. "All ships prepare to cover damaged vessels" Naomi ordered.

"If you will excuse me" said Azan, "I'll get down to my ship and prepare for action. We'll need all the firepower that we can get" and left the bridge in a hurry.

"Have the _Alba_'s crew report to transporters" Rebi said.

"Sirs! The Admiral's ship has been destroyed" said the science officer.

"Open a channel to the fleet" Naomi said.

"Channel open"

"This Admiral Naomi Wildman, assuming command of the fleet. All ships lock all of your weapons onto the following co-ordinates" uttering some of the words she had spoken years before. "All power to forward weapons, lock targets and prepare to engage the enemy"

"The _Alba_ has been transported into space"

"Very well…" Naomi said. "Fire" and as many ships as possible opened fire on a single spot that they had hoped would be a weak spot in the shields of the First Federation vessel. Phasers and torpedoes hammered the shields as they fleet pressed in – taking advantage of the confusion caused by the fleet's arrival.

"Their shields _have_ dropped, but only by 4% the science officer reported.

"Good god" Rebi said. "That thing must have a hell of a shield system… Change our warhead loads for plasma torpedoes" he ordered.

"Aye, Captain" just as the _Seven of Nine_ was hit by a barrage of torpedoes.

"Report!"

"Shields down to 83%. Some minor buckling in the saucer section. Crews on the way to make repairs" Rebi's first officer said.

"Have all ships form line astern of us" said Naomi. "Maybe if we keep pouring the torpedoes into the exact same spot, we'll be able to punch a hole into the shields enough to do something" walking to an unoccupied console at the rear of the bridge. "Computer, load program Naomi 1946 to this station"

"_Loading_"

"Captain, the _Andromeda_ has sustained heavy damage and they are abandoning ship" the operations officer said.

"Have their computer maintain firing for as long as possible" said Rebi. "_Seven of Nine_ to _Alba_. Azan, see if you can overtake this bastard and make him present weaker shields as they vent more drive plasma"

"_I will comply_" Azan replied as they were rocked by more hits and several consoles overloaded.

"Forward shields are down to 56%. Hull damage to all forward sections of the ship" the first officer said.

"Divert auxiliary power to shields. Intensify forward firepower - I want nothing to get through" Rebi ordered.

"We'll try, Sir"

"Do we still have the ability to launch torpedoes?" Naomi asked.

"For the moment" said the officer.

"Keep one of the launchers in use" Naomi said. "Disregard damage to the other forward launchers if needs be" she added.

"Understood, Admiral"

"Computer, what is the status of Naomi 1946?"

"_Program is loaded and awaiting use_"

"Standby to engage on my orders"

"_Acknowledged_"

"Casualty reports coming in. Seventeen people seriously injured. Thirty more are walking wounded" operations said.

"Captain, I have detected a slight imbalance in their shield grid" the Science officer said. "To deploy shuttles during combat, any shielding around the bay doors must be weaker then any other place. They have been lowering to a level sufficient to launch ships for the last minute and a half"

"Pass that location on to the other ships in the fleet" Rebi said. "Ready to launch torpedoes?"

"Aye"

"Then, by all means, open fire" and the plasma torpedoes hurtled out and impacted the weaker shields of the Sphere. They faded in and out of subspace until they passed through the shields and impacted on the bay doors.

"Direct hit"

"Fire at will. Have the _Alba_ move into position Tango 3" Naomi said.

"Understood"

"Firing" and every single ship capable of firing launched all weapons into the space – bringing the shields down with a flare of light.

"Brace for impact!" Rebi called, moments before a shockwave hit the ship and tossed them all over the place. Alarms sounded loudly as each station demanded attention, consoles overloaded, seals broke and some of the lights went out.

"This is fun" said Naomi, hauling herself up from the deck. "You alright, Rebi?" she called, but she received no reply. She looked over at the centre seat and found it was now next to the ready room doors – a crumpled lump pinned beneath it. "Give me a hand" Naomi ignored the pain in her head and rushed over to her friend. With the help of another crewmember she pulled the chair off Rebi and checked him quickly. "XO, do we have transporters?"

"Enough for one transport"

"Beam the Captain directly to sickbay" Naomi ordered, and Rebi was whisked away in a sea of blue. "Damage report!"

"Damage to all systems, Admiral" said the First officer. "We have a hull breach on the forward sections on decks 4 through 12. Shields are gone, Weapons systems are down. Warp drive is offline, transwarp is gone and impulse is down to half power"

"Do we have communications?"

"Not as yet"

"Helm, bring us about and get away from the enemy vessel" Naomi said. "Computer, status of Naomi 1946?"

"_Naomi 1946 has been deleted_"

"Are you sure?"

"_The program has been deleted_"

"Must have some computer loss as well" added the first officer. "Bridge to Engineering"

"_Engineering_" came a rough reply. "_Assistant Chief Hendricks_"

"Where is the Chief?"

"_Here… there and a few other places as well_"

"I see… Can you work on getting external communications back online?"

"_We'll try. There are a lot of people that have been injured, and this whole place is a real mess. I'll try to get something done for you_" and closed the link without another word.

"Helm, evasive pattern Adama" Naomi felt the ship lurch drunkenly to starboard. "Operations, clear this smoke, and see about getting lighting back up to normal"

"I am detecting something ahead" said the Science officer. "Sensors are having a hard time identifying it with all this damage"

"On screen" and the screen was filled with a staticy fog for a few seconds before clearing to show a whole load of bright yellow dots bunched around something. "HARD TO PORT!" Naomi yelled, and they just missed hitting the Sphere – though taking a greater pounding then before as they peeled away. The ship gave a great shudder and started to slow down a great deal.

"We've lost engine power" said the helm. "We're dead in the water – not even thrusters"

"Bridge to engineering. Bridge to Engine Room – please reply" but there was none.

"Communications are down" said the first officer. "Forcefields are down in some sections, but we have transporters back online"

"Beam everyone in none protected areas into deeper parts of the ship" Naomi said.

"Admiral, we're drifting away from the battle zone" Helm said. "I have no way to bring us to a stop"

"Understood"

"_Engineering to bridge_"

"Well done, Engineer"

"_Don't thank me yet, Admiral. We've got a warp core breach in progress. She'll detonate in less then five minutes_"

"Anything you can do?"

"_Nothing. All the safeties have been removed when the computers crashed. Nothing that we can do to stop it_"

"Can you eject the core?"

"_No_"

"Very well. Evacuate your people, Bridge out" Naomi looked around at the operations officer. "Do we still have control of the high gain laser mounted on the bow stern?"

"Yes"

"Then program this message to go out on all directions it is capable of. Warp core breach in just over four minutes. Prepare to take on survivors" Naomi hit a panel on the console she was near. "Attention, all personnel – this is Admiral Wildman. Captain Rebi has been injured, and I am assuming command of this vessel. All hands to abandon ship. I repeat: All hands to abandon ship. Take escape pods and shuttles as possible. Bridge out" she slapped the comm off. "Computer, begin beaming of all those in Sickbay to other friendly vessels – execute" and she looked around at those remaining on the bridge. "You have done valuable work here, but there is no more to be done for this ship. I release all of you. Clear the bridge and abandon ship. Every man and woman for themselves"

"Aye, Aye" the executive officer saluted, as did the others, before getting into the working turbolift for escape pods.

"Computer, seal off the bridge with a forcefield. Merge helm and operations at the helm station" Naomi said, moving to sit at the vacant console. "You can come out now, Q" and was rewarded with a flash of bright light.

"I was beginning to wonder when you would call me" the being said, wearing a Captain's uniform.

"You ready to pay the les of the debt you owe _Voyager_'s crew?" Naomi asked.

"Your crewmembers are being whisked to the other ships in your tiny fleet" Q said. "As we agreed, they will be kept safe from harm, though following as you requested. If you care to look, you'd have noticed that your warp core is fixed, your shields are restored to full power and weapons are back online" the being added.

"Thank you" said Naomi, turning to the console and checking displays as quickly as possible.

"Despite your talents, you are going to require some help" said Q.

"You think?" Naomi asked sarcastically – taking _Seven of Nine_ into a lazy turn to port before heading away at full impulse.

"I would have suggested that you keep some crew with you, but I know of you weakness to keep others safe from harm. As you wish to kill yourself on this mission of yours, I have decided to help you out" and he snapped his fingers – producing a blinding light as the phasers lashed out and hit the Sphere near the impulse manifolds.

"What are you doing?"

"Helping you" said Q.

"Very well" Naomi said. "Man the weapons console, Mr Q!" and, to her surprise, the omnipotent being flashed over to the correct station. "Target all weapons on the impulse manifiolds of that Sphere. Prepare to fire on my command" Naomi swung the ship around and headed for the location – coming close enough so that some of the weapons could not come round to train on her.

"Close enough to fire" Q said.

"Fire everything" Naomi said, struggling to keep the _Seven of Nine_ on course. Phasers, torpedoes and disrupters blazed and flew the distance between the two ships. Pieces of debris came off – and the Sphere could be seen to slow down by a great deal. Naomi swung the ship about to open the distance when the vessel shuddered badly as it took the full blunt force of numerous impacts.

"You appear to have lost your starboard shields" Q said.

"Ignore them. Divert power to phasers" Naomi said, bringing them almost to the rest of the fleet, coming about and heading slowly towards the Sphere.

"If you believe what this excuse for a sensor system is saying, the Sphere will go to warp in two minutes" Q said. "Would you like me to stop them?" he asked.

"No" Naomi shook her head. "I want you to have the others move to a safer distance then what they are already at" she continued. "I'm losing power to all systems. They must have hit the power grid. I'm taking this bastard down with me" and she set course at best possible impulse speed at the Sphere. "Computer, this is Admiral Wildman. Arm Nova Weapon 1. Authorisation code: Flotter T Water III"

"_Code verified_" the computer said over the alarms and sounds of fire from burning pieces of the bridge. "_Nova sequence is completed. Warning… torpedo system is offline. Unable to launch Nova weapon_"

"That is not going to matter" Naomi said. "Activate Self Destruct sequence Naomi Zero One Alpha"

"_At what point_?"

"On my order" Naomi said. "Q, I thank you for the help you have given me. Your debt is repaid"

"I will go now, Admiral Naomi Wildman" Q said, flashing to in front of her. "If you wish, I can arrange for you to become a member of the Q" but Naomi shook her head.

"Thank you, but no thanks, Q" she said. Q was about to leave when something seemed to cross his mind. Doing something he had never done before, he stretched his arm and shook Naomi's hand.

"I believe Jean-Luc Picard would have said '_Bon Voyage_' and 'Good Luck', Admiral" and Q vanished from the bridge.

"Well… what do you know…" Naomi shook her head as she surveyed the bridge. Straightening her rank insignia and brushing off some debris, she walked to the chair that Q had replaced without her knowing about it. With a tug of her uniform jacket, she took the conn of a starship for the final time. "Computer, disregarding all damage to the ship's hull, is it possible for us to get inside the Sphere's hanger bay?" she asked.

"_Outer sections of the saucer section would be demolished_"

"Yes or no, could we get inside?"

"_Affirmative_"

"Lower all but forward shields. Divert power to the impulse drive. Deactivate weapons, structural integrity field, life support… Route it all to the impulse engines – override safeties. Log by Admiral's order"

"_Acknowledged_" and the ship surged forwards at a tremendous speed.

"Computer, adjust heading so that we enter the hanger bay area" Naomi said, looking at the main viewscreen. "Crash us through if you have to, but get this ship inside" just as the ship was rocked by a series of impacts. "Report!"

"_Impulse drive is offline. Warp energisers are offline but are providing power_"

"Will we still have enough forward momentum to get inside?"

"_Affirmative_"

"Keep on course. Use thrusters if you have to – but get us in" Naomi looked at the gaping hole that was getting bigger every second. "Do we have communications at all?"

"_Yes_"

"Open all channels. Relay through Starfleet remote sites to Starfleet command and to the task force. Transfer all logs and scans as quickly as possible"

"_Channels open. Files copying_"

"This is Admiral Wildman to Starfleet Command. The _Seven of Nine_ has been severely crippled and is out of control. We will crash in approximately two minutes. I intend to go down with my command, out. Computer, transfer control of Nova bomb to the command chair"

"_Transfer complete_" the computer replied. The detonation of the last Nova bomb would not be done by the flick of a switch on the command chair arm – normally used to signal Red Alert. Naomi armed it with a single flick. The next one would detonate the bomb – releasing the destructive energy and destroying the _Seven of Nine_ – and taking the Sphere down with it at the same time.

"It's a good day to die, if you know the reasons why" the Admiral said, noting the broken hanger doors filled the screen. The screen showed Kazon and Malon ships attempting to launch, but it all was too late. "Christ…" she chuckled, "But it was damned near thing!" and the _Seven of Nine_" crashed through the remaining parts, tore off the outer sections of the saucer and dived inside. Naomi reached out for the switch, found it…

#

_**FLUMP**_

The blinding light came seconds before the shockwave did, and alarms sounded as the various systems on the fleet's vessels protested the abuse they were getting.

"FULL REVERSE!" Azan screamed at his helm. The _Alba_ tried to get away, but it was still tossed around like a rag doll by an unruly child. "Power to shields and SIF" he shouted. And the shaking stopped, the alarms died down and consoles stopped sparking. "Clear the smoke. Sickbay – medical team to the bridge. Damage report" he called.

"We have lost power to shield emitters 2 and 3, Captain" his bridge Engineer said. "All other systems are either working or coming back online as we speak" and the main viewscreen came on, went through a test pattern before going to what visual sensors were showing.

_Nothing_

"Great Maker…" Azan rose from his chair and stared at the debris that burst into flame, was snuffed out and hit other pieces. A deadly silence hung over the bridge as people looked at the viewscreen. "Scan…" he swallowed the lump in his throat. "Scan for lifesigns" Azan knew that there would be none, but he had to do it anyway.

"Aye" said the science officer.

"_Alba_ to Admiral Wildman. Admiral Wildman, please respond" but there was no reply. "Naomi! It's Azan. Can you hear me?" but she never answered.

"Captain..."

"_AZAN TO NAOMI! PLEASE COME IN!_" Azan yelled in desperation over the comm.

"… I am reading no survivors" the Science Officer said.

"Oh gods…" Azan dropped to his knees as he looked at the few pieces of debris floating in a macabre neat pile. He didn't know from which ship it was from – nor did he care. "Helm, take us in to a distance of 50ft. Operations, transmit a message to Starfleet Command – repeated to all outposts in range"

"Aye, Sir"

"Standing by"

"Message begins: Task Force 8901 in need of immediate engineering assistance. Request urgent medical help. _USS Seven of Nine_ is confirmed as lost with the loss of Admiral Wildman after she took out the enemy vessel by detonation of Nova Bomb. Send on all channels until you receive a reply. All stations stand down from combat. Begin damage checks of all systems. Signal the _Icheb_ that I would like to speak to the Doctor and Captain Rebi as soon as possible"

"Aye, Captain"

"You have the bridge, Number One…" and Azan stood and walked shakily off the bridge and towards his quarters.

# # # # #

"Where… where am I?" he asked, looking around the room – gathering he was in Sickbay.

"Ah, Mr Rebi" the smiling face of _Voyager_'s holographic doctor came into view. "You are awake – good"

"What happened to my ship, Doctor?" Rebi asked.

"It um… Azan, how very nice to see you!" the Doctor said as Rebi's twin came in.

"Azan, what happened to the _Seven of Nine_?" Rebi demanded.

"It blew up"

"Warp core breach?"

"No" Azan shook his head.

"I need to make a report to Naomi" Rebi said through the fogginess of his brain.

"There is no need for that, Rebi" said Azan. Rebi was going to ask why when he saw fully the pale and haunted look on his twin's face.

"Not Naomi…" he croaked, breaking down into tears.

"We got pushed back - we think by the Sphere. From what some of your crew have said to me, Naomi assumed command of your ship, had them abandon ship, did a small fight with the Sphere and then dived into the hanger bay and detonated the Nova Bomb" Azan said. "Starfleet sent a number of ships to aid us. You are the last of the injured to remain in the _Icheb_'s sickbay. Most of the other ships have gone away"

"How… How did the _Alba_ do?" Rebi asked.

"She survived, and is currently heading home with my Number One in command. I have remained here to help carry the remains back to Earth for a service and burial" Azan said.

"Mister Azan conferred with others and decided it would be fitting if the _Voyager_ class ships remained behind to escort Miss Wildman's remains to Starbase" the Doctor said.

"I want to see them" Rebi said.

"They are not remains that you can see, Mister Rebi. I am afraid that they are microscopic in nature, and can not be seen by the naked eye" the Doctor said to him.

"Where is she?"

"Her mortal remains are in the status chamber on the _Mezoti_" Azan said. "Captain Boender and myself thought it would be fitting for Naomi to take one last cruise with her wife, so to speak" and Rebi nodded in agreement.

"We'll get her home, Azan. Even if I have to walk with them home" and he was being deadly serious.

"We will, my brother. We most certainly will" and the three stood and sat in silence as they thought about the future.

# # # # #

"Captains, may I say how sorry I am for your loss" Admiral Eos said. "You will be granted leave for as long as you require. If you would like to, you can turn command over to your Executive Officers and return home with the relief fleet" but Azan shook his head.

"We've always come home with Naomi, and we are not going to give that record a battering now, Sir" he said.

"I am afraid that you would have to make that an order, Admiral" said Rebi.

"Would it be that hard?"

"We have not yet been relieved of our commands, Admiral" Rebi said to the Admiral.

"Very well" Eos said. "I will arrange for berths in Spacedock to be kept private for your arrival in a couple of hours" but the Doctor shook his head.

"We'd like to go to the site of _Voyager_'s return to the Alpha Quadrant" he said. "Naomi would have liked that very much" and the Admiral nodded silently.

# # # # #

"Captains on the deck" a voice called out as Rebi, Azan and Boender strode out onto the bridge of the _Mezoti_. Ary Boender's ship, the _Icheb_, was sitting off the port bow. Boender had wanted to join the remaining members of Voyager's crew on the last trip that Naomi would make. She had never missed a port in her entire career, and the friends were determined to ensure that she wouldn't miss this one. In a fitting tribute, the two ships prefaced their transponders with Naomi's flag ID. _Mezoti's_ normal captain was commanding the _Alba_ as she escorted the damaged vessels back to Utopia Planetia for repairs, medical treatment and debriefing. The ship they stood on had made the trip to Starbase 3 to offload injured and unneeded crew members.

"Operations, close all airlocks and retract capture latches fore and aft" Boender said.

"Bridge to Engineering. Power up and standby on impulse drive" Azan called.

"Helm, move us away from the dock. One half impulse power" Rebi said.

"Permission to enter the bridge?" a light voice caused the twins to turn around and see Saghi standing with the Doctor. When she had heard of her friend's death in battle, she had gone to the temple before getting passage on a fast ship to the Starbase.

"Permission granted" Boender said. Saghi moved to the twins and hugged them both as they returned the gesture.

"We are clear and free to navigate" the Helm officer replied.

"Set course for position 4159.26 by 81921 by 312" Azan said.

"Set speed for Warp 9.99" Rebi said. "Engage" and the _Mezoti_ jumped to warp.

"Somebody ought to take it" Boender said, pointing to the Captain's seat.

"Naomi can take it" said Azan.

"But ho- Of course" he understood quickly.

"Estimated time of arrival at designated location is three days" Helm reported. The senior officers looked at each and smiled.

"I think Miss Wildman would have agreed" the Doctor said.

"Then give the orders, Doctor" Boender said.

"Helm, come to maximum transwarp drive. Bring all systems to Red Alert status – all hands to Battlestations"

#

"We are approaching Sector 001" the helm officer said.

"Drop out of warp" said the Doctor. "Captains, Azan, Rebi and Boender to the bridge please" and the trio arrived as the ship slid to a halt outside Pluto's orbit. "I thought we should all be here when we bring the ship in" and they nodded.

"Operations, call up the ship's historical database" Azan said. "Find a recording of an Earth steamship's whistle and set it to blow seven times. Loop it and broadcast on all frequencies along with Admiral Wildman's ID code"

"Helm, plot a course that will take us to all of the planets – Earth last of all" Rebi said. "Lay it into the navigational computer and engage at full impulse"

"Activate the quarantine lights and beacons, but mute the audio broadcasts" Boender said.

"Captains. I am reading a… number… of ships approaching our position" the science officer said.

"The fleet is coming to carry Naomi home" Azan and Rebi said at the same time.

"Course plotted and laid in" the Helm said.

"Very well" Boender said.

"Attention all hands" Rebi said, "This is Captain Rebi. All officers and crew are to don full dress uniforms and report to their duty stations. That is all" and the bridge crew looked at each other before leaving via the turbolifts. Soon, only the four of them were left on the bridge whilst the duty crew changed into their full dress uniforms.

"This is the first time that I'll have come in to port without Naomi being there" said Azan, staring at the viewscreen.

"Things will never be the same" the Doctor said.

"I envy you, Doctor" Azan said, looking at the hologram as he spoke.

"Oh? How so?"

"Because you are going to have to go though this every time that you lose a loved one" Azan explained.

"I… I never thought of that" the hologram thought about his family and having to attend their funerals as he could live on forever. The four of them talked for nearly half an hour before the bridge crew arrived back on the bridge.

"Helm, check course" Boender said.

"Course checked, Captains" said the officer. "Ready to engage on your order"

"Take us home" Azan said.

"Aye, Aye, Sir" and the _Mezoti_ moved forwards. Over the course of the next few hours, the ship took the well known tour Naomi always did when she brought a ship home – this would be no different. When other ships encountered them, they would always come to a halt and allow the _Mezoti_ to pass well by them. All things, as the twins and the Doctor knew, must come to an eventual end.

"All stop" Bonder said.

"Bring the ship around to 113 mark 95" Azan said.

"Standby on maximum warp" Rebi added.

"Sirs?"

"You heard the order, Helm. Carry them out" Boender said.

"May I remind the Captains that Warp travel is not permitted in the solar system except in times of war?" the First Officer said.

"Boil your head" the Doctor said. "All hands, this is the Bridge. Standby for high warp and sudden braking"

"Engage!" Azan and Rebi said. The _Mezoti_ made a standing jump to full warp – hurtling through space on the last part of the journey.

"Coming up on Earth in ten seconds" the Science Officer said.

"Very well" the Doctor said. "All hands: BRACE, BRACE, BRACE!" and the twins counted off the seconds in their heads.

"Full reverse! All stop! Stop all engines!" and the entire crew was thrown around a little as the dampeners lagged a little from the sudden breaking. When the image was placed on the viewscreen, it showed the ship was sitting right in berth number 1 – _inside_ Spacedock.

"Disengage warp engines. Power down Impulse drives. Hook up to shore utilities" Azan said.

"Attention all hands, this is Captain Rebi. We have arrived in Spacedock. Crew will assemble in Shuttlebay One for inspection by Admiral Commanding. Admiral Wildman will disembark later this evening. That is all – Bridge, out"

#

The turbolift slowed to a halt and opened the doors with a slight hiss.

"ATTENTION ON DECK! ADMIRAL WILDMAN, DEPARTING" a voice called out – making the crew in the corridor face each other on either side and come to attention.

"Good Gods…" Azan said, walking forwards with the precious cargo in one hand. Rebi, the Doctor and Boender also had hold of one corner of the box containing all that was left of Naomi.

"CREW! CREW… SALUTE!" and they snapped of a formal salute to honour their fallen shipmate and honoured dead. They walked down the lined corridor to the airlock, passed through it, stepped onto the deck of the Spacedock and walked slowly to the waiting shuttle – the _Delta Flyer II_. Wherever they went, all work stopped so people could see the small coffin on its sad and stately journey. Departure Control had cancelled everything until they had left, and the _Delta Flyer_ slipped out and headed home for the last time.

Naomi was buried, like the others before her, in the crypt under the _Voyager_ memorial in a massive service that included a fly past by a legion of ships overhead. The twins took an extended leave of absence from Starfleet – returning after a year and a half to start planning a new class of ship. It would take every single good idea from ships before hand and use them. It would out gun, out speed, out manuver and simply out class any other ship that had come before and those that would be after it. The resultant vessel came with twenty seven phaser banks, fifty two torpedo bays, armoured nacelles, battle hardened controls and triple shielding. It was so enormous that it took two years to build the first one. When it was launched out of Utopia Planetia, it sailed under the joint command of Azan and Rebi for a series of tests before it was commissioned and given a Captain. The class was named, like tradition, after the first ship in the class…

_USS Naomi Wildman_


End file.
